Nov. 22, 2007T.J. Auclair
PGATOUR.com Interactive Producer
In the world of golf, I am most thankful for Tiger Woods. The electricity created when he is playing well in an event -- which happens nearly every time he tees it up -- rivals anything in sports. His ability to rise to the occasion on a routine basis means we're lucky enough to see a sports hero in his prime that people will be talking about for hundreds of years to come. In this day and age, it's not often that an athlete lives up to the hype. Not only has Woods lived up to the expectations others have for him, he's exceeded them at an alarming pace. In a sport many think is boring to watch, there's nothing more exciting than watching Woods when he's firing on all cylinders.
Lauren Deason
PGATOUR.com Editorial Coordinator
I'm thankful that golf is a sport that brings together people from all sides of the world and all walks of life. From TPC Mosul in Baghdad, Iraq, to Boo Weekley in Baghdad, Fla., from Giving Back, to Justin Timberlake bringing sexy back (sorry, couldn't resist), golf truly is a barrier-crossing game ... Speaking of Boo Weekley, I'm thankful that 2007 brought us, or at least reminded us about, quotables like Weekley, Will MacKenzie and Woody Austin. They make a golf writer's job easy ... I'm thankful that one day, when little Sam Woods is all grown up, golf will still be a sport of respect, dignity and honesty. So long as gentlemen and women continue to follow the rules of golf, so should the PGA TOUR remain safe from scandals that have recently plagued other sports ... Lastly, I'm thankful that Bobby Jones saw beauty in a nursery in Augusta, Ga., that Pete Dye envisioned a hole where marshland once stood in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., and that Earl Woods saw potential in his young son. Because where would golf be without stories like 2007 Masters champion Zach Johnson, PLAYERS champion Phil Mickelson and the first FedExCup champion Tiger Woods?
Melanie Hauser
PGATOUR.com Correspondent
What am I thankful for? Hmm. Here's a start ... The timelessness and grace of the game ... Arnold Palmer, who, just by being there, makes you smile ... Those unguarded moments with players you know so well -- a wink, a conversation, sharing a moment, period. It blows away any shot you'll ever watch them make. All 33 years of them ... David Toms' passion for LSU ... Jackie Burke's passion for the game. And, of course, for amateurs ... Tiger Woods and Scott Verplank, period ... Players who understand that in giving from the heart, they receive -- a thousand-fold ... Players like Tiger who impact the world when they make their visions -- the TW Learning Center, for one -- a reality ... Augusta National -- it inspires me ... Boo Weekley: Lord, that boy has a way with words ... Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite, Dave Marr and Dan Jenkins ... A group of Austin, Texas, high school kids in the mid-70s who taught me to love the game and the career that followed ... Lorena Ochoa: Just wait ... Steve Stricker, who proved patience is indeed a virtue ... Payne Stewart ... Getting a chance to share the game with my parents before they passed away.
Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.com Correspondent
Funny how things work in life. When I was 12, a man I knew named Chris Doyle gave me an 8-iron -- a Patty Berg signature 8-iron to be exact. I was left-handed. It was right-handed, but I took that club and started swinging it and swinging it until I could actually make a good pass without breaking windows or conking someone on the head. Next thing I knew, I added a club here and a club there and was playing golf, the game of a lifetime for me and so many others. I even played competitively in high school and a little in college. It's 48 years later, and I'm still playing just for the fun of it as well as competitively. I have derived more enjoyment from golf -- at least on those rare days when the ball goes where I'm looking -- than any one human being should be allowed. What's more, golf also shaped my career because I became the golf writer for my hometown newspaper -- New Orleans' big daily -- and no matter what other assignments I might have, I always covered golf where I forged a lifetime of friendships until I retired three years ago. Yet I'm still at it. Playing and writing about it. For all the above I am extremely grateful, especially to the late Mr. Doyle, who gave me a nudge in the right direction.
John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor
The game of golf can take many forms in a life. As a child, it was my rite of passage. As a collegian, it was my escape. For nearly two decades as an adult, it was my profession. And even now that it is my recreation, it still reveals myself to me every time I play. This year and every year, I am thankful that my father passed on his love for the game to me. But this year, more so than any other year, I am thankful that I have found the game again.
Helen Ross
PGATOUR.com Chief of Correspondents
I am thankful that my parents used to take me to the Greater Greensboro Open (now the Wyndham Championship) when I was a kid -- and that they are still playing and enjoying the game now that they are octogenarians. ... I am thankful for sportswriters like Irwin Smallwood and Ron Green Sr. sharing their love of the game with me. ... I am thankful that I got to see Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus play and that I have been able to cover the changing of the guard in the phenomenal Tiger Woods. ... I am thankful for the game's colorful characters like Boo Weekley and Woody Austin. I am thankful for the life lessons golf teaches us -- honesty, integrity and sportsmanship, to name a few. I am thankful for breaking 100 the first time, and then 90, although many more rounds in the 80s have been elusive. I am thankful for the game's special places like Pinehurst No. 2 and Augusta National. I am thankful for the way the game gives back to communities that host PGA TOUR events and the way its players embrace that mission, as well. And last, but certainly not least, I am thankful for the friends I have made playing and covering this game.
Dave Shedloski
PGATOUR.com Senior Correspondent
This is a potentially long list, so we'll whittle it down to some special items Here goes: I'm thankful for birdies after a press ... I'm thankful for Tiger Woods chasing Jack Nicklaus' record ... I'm thankful for Jack Nicklaus giving Tiger Woods a record to chase ... I'm thankful for the quotable duo of Paul Azinger and Nick Faldo and the fodder they are likely to provide in the run-up to the 2008 Ryder Cup ... I'm thankful for the game's honor and integrity ... I'm thankful for Ian Poulter's wardrobe ... I'm thankful for a perfect Saturday afternoon lining up putts for my son and daughter ... I'm thankful for Rory Sabbatini's candor ... I'm thankful for Darren Clarke's disposition, and Steve Stricker's, too ... I'm thankful for Vijay Singh's work ethic ... I'm thankful for Scott Verplank's grit ... I'm thankful for the literary breadth and depth that golf inspires ... I'm thankful to have an opportunity to add just a tiny bit to that breadth and depth, because it's the greatest job in the universe.